Total pages in book: 95
Estimated words: 92547 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 463(@200wpm)___ 370(@250wpm)___ 308(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 92547 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 463(@200wpm)___ 370(@250wpm)___ 308(@300wpm)
“Well, my last couple of meetings got rescheduled, so I thought I’d come back and surprise you. Turns out I was the one surprised.”
I quickly explained the rental mix-up and that Chloe was an old family friend. That didn’t seem to diffuse the situation, though.
“Why was your family friend wearing your sweatshirt?”
Fuck. “I’ve been keeping the house cold.” I rubbed my temples.
“She doesn’t have her own sweaters?”
“Don’t read into it, Naomi,” I warned, even though I’d thought the same thing when I saw Chloe wearing my sweatshirt. Not that I minded—just the opposite. But the fact that she’d kept wearing it all day? That did seem intentional.
“So…this strange woman with a French braid who likes to wear your clothes is going to be living with you and Effie indefinitely? And I’m supposed to just accept that?”
“Only until something else opens up in town for her,” I answered, laughing a little as I thought about the fact that Chloe still hadn’t taken out the French braid.
“Well, how about if she stays at my place, and I move in with you guys? Problem solved.”
My mouth opened and closed a few times as I found myself at a loss for words. That might’ve seemed like a logical solution. But I didn’t want that. And I wasn’t ready to delve into my psyche to figure out why. All I knew was that telling Chloe she had to leave to go to my girlfriend’s house after I’d just told her she could stay as long as she needed to wasn’t going to happen. Naomi was testing me. I never let her spend the night because of Effie. Now that Chloe was staying with us, I couldn’t blame Naomi for trying to make a point. But I also wasn’t going to take the bait.
“Having you move in would send a message to Effie that I’m not ready for,” I finally said.
“What message? That you’re serious about me and not wasting my time?”
“We’ve talked about this, Naomi. I’m not ready to have a woman move in with us.”
“Last I fucking checked, you’re living with one right now!”
Fair point. “It’s different because she and I aren’t romantically involved.”
“So, she gets to live with you and I don’t? Make it make sense.”
“I’m not sure how to better explain it.”
I knew this was unfair to her, but at this point, I was willing to let the situation unravel without putting up a fight. I didn’t have it in me to give Naomi what she really needed. Or maybe she didn’t have what I needed.
Naomi raised her voice. “How about this? As long as she’s living under your roof, you can count me out. It’s bad enough that your daughter doesn’t seem to like me. But now you’ve brought in some other woman to live with you both?”
“I didn’t create this situation intentionally,” I managed, unable to summon the energy to argue. “But I understand if you need to walk away.”
“I’ve offered you a solution, and you’re not taking it, so I have to wonder if there’s something I’m missing here.”
“You’re not missing anything.” I rubbed my temples, mentally exhausted from this conversation. I hadn’t had the bandwidth lately to work on my relationship with Naomi. Maybe this was the out I needed.
“If you feel it’s better for us to take a break, I understand,” I said, knowing full well it was shitty to put this on her. If the tables were turned, I would’ve been pissed, too.
“You’re not even gonna fight me on it?”
“Chloe is like family to me. Her parents took me in years ago when my mother was dying. I’m not going to tell her she has to leave when I’ve already told her she could stay. If you can’t accept that, what choice do I have?”
A heavy silence lingered for several seconds before she finally said, “Well, I hope you’re happy then.”
“Naomi, I’m really—”
She hung up before I could say anything else.
Well, shit. I hadn’t expected that. I stared into space, debating whether I’d made the right decision. Would Chloe have preferred her own space at Naomi’s? Why had I been so damn quick to shut that option down?
“Earth to Daddy!”
Effie had been dismissed from class, and I’d been so lost in my damn mind that I didn’t notice.
“Hey, baby.” I exhaled.
“I’m starving. Can we get Chick-fil-A on the way home?”
“Sure,” I said, still stuck in my head.
“Really?”
I nodded. Normally, Effie had to beg for takeout, and I typically didn’t budge. But today? I was spent. I might’ve burned dinner if I’d attempted to cook.
“We should get something for Chloe, too, because she might die if she forgets to eat again,” Effie added. “You should call her to see what she wants.”
“I don’t have her number, actually,” I told her as we headed out to the parking lot.